Ice Houses in the Black Isle

Ice Houses are quite a common feature in northeast Scotland. They were used to store locally-caught salmon before the stocks were sent off to markets around Britain and abroad.

This Ice House is at Chanonry Ness, next to the Fortrose and Rosemarkie golf course. Other examples can be found at Braehead at Cromarty and Kincurdie Brae in Rosemarkie. They all date from the 19^th century.

It was a Scottish merchant by the name of George Dempster who, in the year 1786, first used ice for preserving salmon on its way to market. Previous to this, stocks had to be preserved by being boiled, salted and pickled.

The ice was gathered from freshwater ponds and lochs or imported by sea. At Rosemarkie, the ice was collected from ponds in the Fairy Glen. When ice was not available, the fish was smoked in kilns before being exported. The Ice House roofs were covered with turf to add insulation and reduce the rate at which the iced melted.

Towards the end of the 19^th century mechanical refrigeration was introduced and the Ice Houses became obsolete.